Catching Up

The problem with not updating regularly is when you do begin to write, you’re not sure where to start. So I’ll just start.

Freelance
For some reason, I’ve gotten quite a bit of freelance work this year, which is good and bad. The extra money has been really helpful as we plan for the baby. But the truth is, I don’t have the endurance I used to have. After working a full day, I want to come home, work out, read or hang out with Nate, and go to bed. Instead I’ve been coming home and working until 2 or 3 in the morning. As I enter my 26th week of pregnancy, I’m realizing I just can’t do this. My body can’t keep up. I can’t sit in a chair as long as I used to because my back starts hurting. I’m tired all the time, and I start worrying about the baby. So, I just finished a large, intensive assignment and I think I will take only my small, regular gigs (the ones that take only a couple of hours, versus weeks) to complete. In general, though, I plan to cut back on the freelance and will try to spend less money to compensate.

Novel
I’ve heard from a few agents who have said that I’m a good writer but they don’t think they can sell the book. I think this is code for “this needs more work.” I got some very thorough suggestions from one agent who said she would look at the book again if I made some revisions. These are big changes, but not at all unexpected. Cut the book dramatically (about 42K words, which would put me at the upper range of what most publishers like to publish in terms of length which is about 100K words), and address the structure, which jumps around in time. The cuts will be challenging, but I’m not too worried about them. The hard part will be the structure. I think I’m going to have to play around with chapters and think about them. I hope to get started this weekend or next week.

Nursery
We now have all the furniture we need, I think. My mother-in-law is coming over this weekend to help us paint. We’re doing a sea/underwater theme and painting things like schools of fish, sand, jellyfish, a submarine, bubbles, and I can’t remember what else. Should be fun. While we still need quite a few things, I’m feeling much more prepared for the baby. Meet Ollie, the first inhabitant of the nursery.

The Baby
Last week was the first time we could see the baby moving under my skin. A little surreal, but very cool. Nate had felt her move once before, when we were lying in bed spooning and my stomach was against his back. He was talking and she seemed to be responding to his voice, kicking so he felt a vibration along his back. This past weekend he felt her several times. She’s getting quite a kick on her. It startles me from time to time and if my arm is resting on my tummy, it will sometimes shoot up after a particularly strong kick.

Cravings
I haven’t craved anything too unusual. But lately all I want to eat is cheerios with soymilk, for some reason. Sometimes I will have three bowls in a sitting. I guess the craving is a little odd, but it doesn’t really compare to ice cream and pickles, right?

Dallas
Oh, where to begin. Last weekend we went to San Marcos to celebrate six years of being together. We picked San Marcos because neither of us had spent much time there and we have often talked about returning to live in Central Texas. While San Marcos is charming, Nate and I came to a realization about moving. If we’re going to move somewhere in Texas, chances are it will be back to Austin. The downside: housing is more expensive and jobs are more limited compared to Dallas. I have quite a few conflicting feelings about moving, as does Nate. On the one hand, we really like our house, we both have good jobs we appreciate, and we have good options here in terms of career, neighborhoods, schools, etc. But … but. I feel like we are “making it work.” Neither of us is excited about living here. We aren’t miserable; we’re just sort of eh about the city. Sometimes we get excited about certain initiatives or cultural offerings, but we always default to feeling that Dallas isn’t home. There is no easy answer for this, so we’re just waiting to see what the tide brings. Maybe I’ll consult a Magic 8 ball.